Surprisingly low WAR

[etsmith]

WAR is a good stat but only in combination with other stats. Taken by itself it's not reliable, as shown by many of the examples above.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Bumping this to add another -- Juan Gonzalez, only 38.7. Leaving aside whether he juiced, a dominant slugger for quite a stretch.

[Aquarian Sports Cards]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Bumping this to add another -- Juan Gonzalez, only 38.7. Leaving aside whether he juiced, a dominant slugger for quite a stretch.

yeah but a dominant slugger in an era where EVERYONE was a slugger to some degree. If he had put up those numbers in the 1970's and early 80's when 35 HR often led the league his WAR would be WAY higher.

[Mike D.]

Originally Posted by Aquarian Sports Cards

yeah but a dominant slugger in an era where EVERYONE was a slugger to some degree. If he had put up those numbers in the 1970's and early 80's when 35 HR often led the league his WAR would be WAY higher.

Yes, the era is a big part of it. As is poor defense and baserunning. Also, he only had 8 seasons of 130 games played, which I imagine contributed as WAR is a counting stat.